A former Riviera Beach police officer found guilty of vehicular manslaughter in a 2023 crash was sentenced to 18.5 years in prison.
Carl Rashad Johnson was found guilty in April 2026 on two counts of vehicular manslaughter. He was on duty at the time of a June 2023 crash that killed driver Danielle Bell, 43, and passenger Rodneshia Saunders, 29.
Investigators said Johnson was driving more than 90 mph in a marked Riviera Beach police cruiser at about 1 a.m. when he slammed into a 2019 Hyundai Genesis G80 at Australian Avenue and West 13th Street in Riviera Beach.
According to a PBSO investigation, Johnson did not have his emergency lights or sirens activated, and the vehicle's data recorder showed he was driving 94 mph just five seconds before the crash, in an area with a posted speed limit of 35 mph. He sustained serious injuries.
Assistant State Attorney Francine Edwards, chief of the Traffic Homicide Unit, wrote in her sentencing memorandum: "The Defendant’s reckless behavior when he was tasked with protecting the community fell so short of what was required that only a substantial sentence in the Department of Corrections would be just."
As part of the sentencing, Johnson's driver license was also revoked for 10 years.
